Shoe display rack



Spt. 1, 1959 J. SMITH 2,902,167

SHOE DISPLAY RACK Filed April 24, 1957 mmvrox Joe L. SMITH Q w w KATTORNEY United States This invention relates in general to merchandisedisplay and, more particularly, to a shoe display rack.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a shoe display rackwhich is adapted for ready, detachable engagement upon a shoe box fordisplaying one shoe of the pair therein normally contained, the use ofwhich rack obviates the need for costly, large display cabinets, cases,and the like, and permits display of samples of substantially the entireline carried by a shoe store in customarily unused space.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a shoe displayrack which is adapted for engagement upon a shoe box so as to not causedisturbance of same while reposed upon a store shelf and which permitsthe box to be fully closed by its associated cover when the rack is inoperative position.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a shoedisplay rack which is adapted for easy adjustment for firmly supportingshoes of various sizes.

It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a shoedisplay rack which is light weight; which may be economicallymanufactured; and which is reliable and durable in usage.

These and other detailed objects are obtained by the structuresillustrated in the accompanying drawing in which- Figure 1 is aperspective view of a shoe display rack constructed in accordance withand embodying the present invention, illustrating the rack in operative,mounted position upon a shoe box.

Figure 2 is a vertical transverse section taken on the line 22 of Figure1.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the rack.

Referring now by reference characters to the drawing which illustratesthe preferred embodiment of the present invention, A designates aconventional shoe box, sized for receiving a pair of shoes, having sidewalls 1 and end walls 2, and associated therewith is the usual flangedcover 3. Provided for use with shoe box A is a shoe display rackindicated generally at B, being formed preferably from a single lengthof spring steel wire stock having desired resiliency and strength. Eachof the end portions of the wire constituting display rack B are bentback upon themselves in U-shape, forming inner and outer opposed legs 4,5 to provide spaced apart, downwardlyopening box-engaging clips 0, cwhereby when in operative position the bend 6 of each clip 0, c will bedisposed upon the upper edge of the normally outer end wall 2 of box Awith the related legs 4, 5, respectively, abutting against the outer andinner faces of said end wa l 2. At the lower end of each leg 4 of eachclip 0, c, which legs may be of greater length than legs 5, rack B isbent substantially perpendicularly to said legs 4 to provide alignedheel-spacer portions '7, which will be horizontally presented when rackB is in mounted position. Forwardly of each heel-spacer portion 7, rackB is shaped to provide cooperating shoe clamps 8 of general inverseV-design,

atent O each comprising an upwardly and forwardly extending leg 9 and acorresponding downwardly and forwardly extending or return leg 10,whereby said clamps 8 project upwardly above portion 7. Forwardly ofeach leg 9 of clamps 8 the adjacent sections 11 of the wire forming rackB extend outwardly in slightly downwardly inclined relation to thehorizontal and in mutual converging relationship, being joined at theirforward ends through a connecting end portion 12 extending therebetween.

In the usage of rack B for shoe display purposes, the user will removeone shoe from shoe box A and engage the clips 0, c of rack B uponforward end wall 2 of said shoe box and thereupon restore cover 3 tofully closed condition, which cover may be easily placed over clips c, c(Figure 2). The shoe to be displayed, as indicated at S, is thenpresented upon rack B so that the under portion of the forward end ortoe thereof will rmt upon connecting member 12, with rack sections 11,11 receiving, supportedly thereon, the lateral sections of the vampportion of shoe S. Opposite rear lateral portions of shoe S, normallyupwardly of the heel, will be tightly abutted by clamps 8 with theresulting positive engagement securely maintaining shoe S againstaccidental dislodgement from rack B. It will be noted that clamps 8extend upwardly a distance for providing reliable lateral support to theshoe S substantially throughout its height while the increasinglywidened base portion of clamps 8 will engage the shoe over a relativelyextensive area. The downward and forward inclination of the outerportion of rack B is slight enough to prevent any gravitational effectof sufiicient strength to urge shoe S toward displacement, yet the angleof such inclination is adequate for full presentation of shoe S forexhibition purposes. Rack B may be easily adjusted by hand so as toforce clamps 8 toward and away from each other so that the interveningdistance will be slightly less than the width of the portion of shoe Sto be engaged therebetween, thereby assuring a reliable, gripping actionfor securement of shoe S while on display. The rack of the presentinvention is so designed and constructed that it will provide requisiteshoe support and yet entail minimum weight so that it will not create anupsetting force upon the associated shoe box which will hence remain innormal, undisturbed state upon the shelf. The weight of the shoeretained within box A will adequately counter-balance the displayedshoe, thus preventing any undesired disarrangement of the stock on theshelves. The inherent resiliency of the wire forming rack B permitsmutual adjustment of clamps 8 to render rack B capable of accommodatingshoes of varying widths so that a single rack may be used for a widerange of shoe sizes. The movement of clips 0, 0' along the edge of boxWall 2 consequent to adjusting movement of clamps 8 will be smooth andunimpeded, as the same will substantially slide therealong.

It will thus be seen that by the use of the present invention a shoestore operator will be obviated the necessity of utilizing expensive,sizable display cases and yet be enabled to place on display the varioustypes and styles of shoes available for sale within space heretoforedeemed unusable for such purposes. It is recognized that racks B areespecially suited for use with womens and childrens shoes, which arecustomarily of relatively light weight, but it is, of course, within thescope of this invention to so adapt rack B for use with heavierfootwear, such as mens street shoes, and the like. Display racks of thepresent invention may be very inexpensively produced, are easily mountedin operative position and dismounted therefrom, and the adjustmentthereof is simply accomplished by the application of either inwardly oroutwardly directed pressure upon clamps 8, as indicated. As

3 racks B are of unitary construction the same are not readily damaged,-but are highly durable in usage.

It should be understood that changes and modifications in the formation,construction, arrangement, and combinat'ion of the severalparts" of theshoe display rack may be'made and substituted for these herein shown anddescribed without departing from the nature and principle Of myinvention;

Having thus described my invention-, what I claim and desire to secureby Letters Patent is:

An individual shoe display rack formed from a single length of resilientWire stock for use with a shoe box having sidea-nd end walls, said rackbeing of general L l-formation with its side portions beingsymmetrical,each side portion having a downwardly-opening clip memher formed at itsfree end, eachclip having vertical legs for embracing a wall of the shoebox, there being a heelspacerp'ortion provided outwardly of each clipand being substantially axially perpendicular to the legs thereof, a

clamp member for engaging a lateral portion of a shoe being providedimmediately adjacent and outwardly of the related heel spacer, eachclamp being an upwardly extending loop having a rearward and forwardleg, an elongated vamp support portion extending outwardly and slightlydownwardly from the associated clamp member, said elongated portionsbeing connected in their outer end portions by a transversely extendingtoe support, said side portions of said rack being. normally spacedapart a distance less than the width of the shoe to be received wherebysaid clmp' members will he placed under tension for reliable gripping ofsuch shoe.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS795,117 Harding July 18, 1905 940,812 Hermann Nov. 23, 1909 1',178',I04Robertson Apr. 4, 1916 ra a a "v

